Caleb is a recent convert to Catholicism, and an inspirational voice to those who face opposition from friends and family when revealing their intent to "come home" to the Catholic Church! I think you'll find Caleb's journey of faith a model of courage, inspiration, and joy! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA04qCQO_uc&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR0-0gfG_yN6ADE_xy0www8V-yJ-qwyfazuUfGso9HeRAfz-Ir7iARbPI4Y ..read more

By John Henry Catholics and Orthodox can be found on Facebook pointing fingers, arguing over who left who, and building up animosity rather than finding peace with one another. Although I am no expert in the list of Catholic and Orthodox bishops who pronounced excommunications on one another, or the history and outcome of every bitter debate, I felt like sharing my own perspective on this long feudal matter. Below is a slightly cleaned up response that I made on Facebook, to a post that said the following: "It was the Roman church that left the Church, that has remained Orthodox. it can be se ..read more

By John Henry The topic of "authority" is probably the central, core issue for most non-Catholic criticism when discussing the Church started by Christ. If the Catholic Church truly has Christ's authority to teach, hand-on, and certify the fullness of truth, then non-Catholic Christians would have to relinquish their own interpretation of the bible that conflicts with Catholic dogmas and doctrines. Most protestants claim that the Bible is their "sole authority" over all matters of Christian faith, and do not believe in the necessity of the Roman Pontiff. However, that creates a problem becaus ..read more

By: John Henry "Original Sin" refers to the first sin committed by Adam and Eve in the Book of Genesis. Before they ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve experienced "heaven on earth" in complete bliss. However, the serpent introduced Adam and Eve to the power of temptation, convincing them that the infinite blessings of God were not enough, but that grasping for more, even in opposition to God's commands, could lead them to greater happiness and knowledge. Eating the forbidden fruit ruptured God's union with man, resulting in fear, shame, sickness, and death. All gene ..read more

Over the past few days, I've been having some back-and-forth contested communication with a person on Facebook named "Diana". Her initial post suggested that Catholics need to "stop living by the few passages" they [we] know regarding salvation. She then quoted a few verses about "works" and said that Catholics think that they can "earn" their salvation. So, I had to respond. And each time I contested Diana's premise, I was told that I haven't been "taught right" and that I was wrong. The thing is... she never said what I was "wrong" about! We exchanged a few paragraphs with each other, and I ..read more

By: John Henry Some people think that the Catholic tradition of confessing sins to a priest is plain ridiculous! "Why should I confess my sins to a priest who is just an ordinary man?" they ask. So, let's look at what Sacred Scripture has to say about confessing sins to a priest in this multi-part article and compare it to what the Catholic Church teaches in word and practice. Let's start with a scriptural foundation: The fundamental basis for the Sacrament of Confession (or Penance or Reconciliation) is found in the Gospel of John, where Jesus visits with the apostles shortly after his Resur ..read more

Here's one: "For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel"(1 Corinthians 4:15). You don't see the word "Pope"? The word "pope"is an English translation of the Latin word, which means"papa" or"father". The pope is a priest, whom we call "Father", as in our "father in Christ Jesus", in the same spirit of the word"father"used by  St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 4:15 (see above). Since the Pope is the"Bishop of Rome", a successor of St. Peter as the leader of the apostles and the Church ..read more

Holy Matrimony is the first Sacrament that God created, when he created Adam and Eve. It is through the bond of husband and wife that man and woman can experience a sample of the intimacy that God invites us to have with Him, through Christ and his Church. With regards to an unmarried and celibate priesthood, this, too, is completely biblical. Sacred Scripture, for example, says the following: "I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has his own special gift from God, one of one kind and one of another" (1 Cor 7:7).  In the above quote, St. Paul is speaking about being unmarrie ..read more

Nothing. Catholics are the first Christians. In fact, prior to 1517, all Christians were Catholic (and Orthodox). However, Martin Luther, a Catholic priest from Germany, broke away from the Church after expressing frustration with the Pope regarding some issues that he saw as leading to corruption and abuse. At that time, Germany, never fond of the amount of influence Rome had over politics in the developing world, was happy to get behind Luther and support his break from Rome. Thus, the Lutheran church was established. Since then, others who disagreed with Luther, and/or empowered by their ow ..read more

In our previous post, we discovered where the Bible refers to the Catholic Church, through the "universal" mission that Christ gave to his apostles. Moreover, by the year 110 A.D., the term "Catholic" was already widely used by the first Christians. The title became formalized in order to draw distinction between the teaching of the Apostles, and the heretical and unorthodox teachings that were circulating and causing confusion among Christians. These heresies were inconsistent with the full deposit of faith transmitted by the Apostles. This is why, in part, Paul and others began writing lette ..read more